Indiana DOT reopens I-65 in southern Indiana after whiteout

A series of accidents and “whiteout conditions” shut down a 60-mile stretch of Interstate 65 in Indiana for several hours on Tuesday, according to a spokesman for the Indiana Department of Transportation.

At around 9 a.m. the interstate was closed from Exit 16 at Memphis to Exit 76 at Taylorsville, due to crashes, blowing snow and low visibility.

“There’s a lot of wind down there and visibility was very bad,” INDOT spokesman Harry Miginity said in a phone interview with “Land Line Now.” “The state police obviously had to clear out the accidents.”

INDOT originally shut down both the north and southbound lanes, although Maginity said the northbound lanes had reopened late Tuesday morning, albeit with some lane restrictions. The state’s travel and road conditions map on the DOT website lists conditions as “difficult on much of I-65.

The agency put out a press release Monday advising travelers to be on alert after forecasters called for up to three inches of snow to be dumped on the area during the morning rush hour.